Clothing manufacturers typically produce clothing garments in batches according to size. The manufacturers then affix one or more labels to each garment to identify the size and other pertinent data. Each clothing garment then is mounted on a separate hanger and shipped to an appropriate wholesale or retail facility. In many instances, the garments are relabeled with an appropriate size tag for the individual retail. Additionally, each retailer will often replace the original manufacturer's hanger with a hanger of its own.
The clothing distribution process briefly described above requires each garment to pass through several hands prior to reaching the retail rack. During each step of this distribution process, it is necessary for each garment to be sorted according to its size. The labels referred to above generally are affixed manually or with small hand held machines. The personnel handling the clothing garments generally are required to search for and identify the size tag to insure that the garments are properly sorted and to inventory items being sold.
The hangers on which individual garments are shipped, stored and displayed includes an elongated generally shoulder shaped support on which a garment is supported or an elongated bar having clips to which the garment may be releasably attached. A neck typically extends upwardly from the garment supporting portion. The neck typically terminates in a hook integral therewith, and dimensioned to be placed on or removed from a horizontal bar.
Some hangers are intended to receive a size tag thereon. For example, size tags have been adhesively attached to the garment supporting portion directly beneath the neck and hook portions of the hanger. Other hangers have included a separate size identifying collar to be engaged on the neck of the hanger between the hook and the garment supporting portion. The object of these prior art hangers has been to more clearly identify the size of the garment supported thereon, and thereby avoid the need to search over the garment itself for a size tag. Although this objective is desirable, the size indicia on the hanger often is not immediately visible to the consumer or retailer. Thus, the consumer or retailer must move the garments and hangers relative to one another in an effort to identify an appropriate size label. Additionally, the prior art has relied upon thet manual placement of the size labels or collars onto the appropriate hanger. This has added to the time and cost required to deliver the clothing articles to the retail floor. In this regard, it must be noted that the clothing industry is extremely competitive, and time and cost penalties generally cannot be tolerated.
Recently, hangers have been developed which include a panel for size labels on the hook portion of the hanger. More particularly, the panel for the size label will be disposed on the portion of the hook that will be nearest the consumer or retailer inspecting a rack of garments. Hangers of this type have been molded from plastic and the panel for the size label has been disposed at an acute angle with respect to the bar from which the hanger is suspended. The location and angular alignment of this panel is intended to make the size label thereon immediately visible to the consumer or retailer inspecting a rack of garments. One hanger of this type is shown in U.S. Pat. No. 4,450,639 which issued to Duester on May 29, 1984. Although hangers of this general type will facilitate the identification of a particular size, it has been relatively difficult and costly to place the size labels on the hangers. One approach has been to employ small clip-on plastic members to identify the size. However, these clip-on members have added to the cost of the product. Additionally, the small clip-on members require considerable manual dexterity and can be accidentally knocked off during transit or storage. Another option has been to apply adhesive labels to the panels on these hangers. However, the adhesive labels have been manually applied with corresponding time and cost penalties. Furthermore, the small adhesive labels have been difficult to handle and properly position on the small panels of the hangers. Available labeling machines have been unacceptable because they are primarily intended to apply the labels to a relatively large sturdy surface. The known labeling machines would be unacceptable to apply a small label to a small angularly aligned panel on a structurally weak hook of a plastic hanger. Furthermore, available labeling machines would require careful manual positioning, thereby offering few if any advantages over purely manual application of labels.
In view of the above, it is an object of the subject invention to provide an apparatus for efficiently placing labels on a clothing hanger.
It is another object of the subject invention to provide an automatic labeling apparatus for placing size labels on the hook portion of a clothing hanger.
A further object of the subject invention is to provide a labeling apparatus to place size labels on angularly aligned panels of a plastic clothing hanger.
An additional object of the subject invention is to provide a labeling apparatus that is adjustable with respect to the angle of the surface to which the label will be applied.
A further object of the subject invention is to provide a labeling apparatus that can be incorporated into an apparatus for advancing the hangers and clothing thereon to appropriate racks for shipping and storage.